1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tow bar extending between a towing vehicle and a towed vehicle in general, and more particularly, to a novel collapsible tow bar assembly that is easily secured to the towing vehicle when not in use.
2. Background of the Invention
As cross-country travel has become more popular over the last few decades, increasing numbers of individuals and families have turned to the recreational vehicle (RV) as a convenient, fun and exciting way to tour the country. Although the RV is well suited to cross-country driving on interstate highways and the like, city and local driving is often more difficult due to the RV's large size. The ability to tow vehicles behind the RV provides the RV owner with greater freedom and flexibility once the destination is reached. Many different tow bar designs have been used over the years in an effort to properly couple the towed vehicle to the RV. Convenience, safety and ease of operation are increasingly becoming important considerations in tow bar design since an ever larger percentage of the cross-country travelers today are senior citizens and retirees.
A tow bar in use today is that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,805 issued to Davis. Davis discloses a triangular shaped collapsible tow bar that is secured to the towed vehicle when not in use. The tow bar extends from the towed vehicle and connects to the hitch ball attached to the RV. Since the tow bar in Davis is secured to the front end of the towed vehicle when not in use, the tow bar necessarily protrudes from and adds extra weight to the front end of the towed vehicle. The extra weight and bulk on the front end may reduce the driveability of the car. Moreover, use of a towing ball extending from the rear of the RV to couple to the tow bar requires that the user carefully align the towed vehicle with the RV.
An improvement of the Davis tow bar is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,240 issued to Johnson. Johnson discloses a collapsible tow bar that may be removably installed on a receiver hitch of a towing vehicle. The tow bar includes a frame and a pair of elongated bars that extend rearward from the frame and provide for the connection with the vehicle to be towed. The bars are connected to a pivot block which is mounted to the forward portion of the frame, so as to permit the pivot block and bars to pivot from a horizontal position to a generally vertical storage position. The pivot block is mounted such that the bars are rotatable as a unit along an axis parallel to the direction which the vehicle is towed. Hooks are mounted at the ends of the elongated bars and provide for connection with U-shaped loops mounted to the bumper of the towed vehicle.
While Johnson solved some of the problems of the prior art, namely providing a collapsible tow bar which could be stored on the towing vehicle, his invention failed to address some significant problems, including providing for the smooth movement of the swing arms in planes parallel and perpendicular to the movement of the towed vehicle.
Accordingly, it is therefore a general object of the present invention to provide an improved tow bar assembly that is economical to manufacture, compact, light weight, simple to use, and can be used on a variety of different vehicles.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a tow bar assembly that is collapsible, and quickly and easily stored on the towing vehicle when not in use.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a tow bar system that may be readily extended for towing purposes and simply connected to the towed vehicle.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a tow bar system that incorporates a yoke and ball joint to provide increased flexibility of movement along axes both parallel and perpendicular to the direction of vehicle motion to facilitate towing on uneven or bumpy terrain.
In accordance with these and many other objects, I have invented a unique tow bar assembly that solves the problems that others have failed to address.